Method and System for Providing Reward Status

ABSTRACT

The present invention generally relates to providing a status for one or more rewards using a format in a plurality of display formats. Portable device information associated with a portable device and acceptance point device information associated with an acceptance point device are determined. A status for one or more rewards is determined based on the portable device information and the acceptance point device information. A display format is then determined from a plurality of display formats based on the portable device information and acceptance point device information. A status is then displayed using the display format.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present generally relates to loyalty programs and more specificallyto apparatus and methods for providing a status for one or more rewardsusing customized formatting.

Loyalty programs are programs that provide users with incentives to shopat certain merchants participating in the loyalty programs. Typically,users are awarded rewards when they shop at the merchants participatingin that loyalty program. The rewards may then be redeemed.

Loyalty programs typically offer rewards that are straightforward. Forexample, a typical loyalty program may be “buy a certain amount of thisproduct, and receive this reward”. The status of this kind of loyaltyprogram can be communicated to a user in a receipt using a text display.The representation may print the number of products purchased and thenumber of products needed to qualify for a reward.

As loyalty programs become more complicated, it becomes difficult torepresent the status of the programs using a text representation on areceipt. For example, as a user becomes eligible for multiple loyaltyprograms that include multiple products and multiple rewards, the amountof text that is needed to communicate the status in the loyalty programsfor the on receipt increases. It becomes hard to clearly communicate astatus of all eligible loyalty programs. Thus, a user may not even readthe text representation of the status for the loyalty programs.Accordingly, the benefits of providing the status of the loyaltyprograms are minimized.

Consequently, improved apparatus and methods for providing a status forone or more rewards in one or more loyalty programs are desired.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to providing astatus for one or more rewards using a format in a plurality of displayformats. In one embodiment, portable device information associated witha portable device and acceptance point device information associatedwith an acceptance point device are determined. A status for one or morerewards is determined based on the portable device information and theacceptance point device information. A display format is then determinedfrom a plurality of display formats based on the portable deviceinformation and acceptance point device information. A status is thendisplayed using the display format.

In one embodiment, a method for providing a status for one or morerewards using a plurality of display formats is provided. Each displayformat displays the status in a different format. The method comprises:determining portable device information associated with a portabledevice; determining acceptance point device information associated withan acceptance point device; determining a status for one or more rewardsfor the portable device based on the portable device information and theacceptance point device information; determining a display format in theplurality of display formats based on the portable device informationand the acceptance point device information; and outputting the statususing the display format.

In another embodiment, a method for outputting a status for one or moreloyalty programs is provided. The method comprises: determining acurrent status in one or more loyalty programs; determining a rewardstatus in the one or more loyalty programs, the reward status includinga position where a reward is earned for the one or more loyaltyprograms; determining a desired status for one or more desired loyaltyprograms, the desired status including a position where a reward for theone or more desired loyalty programs other than the one or more loyaltyprograms is earned; determining a format to display the desired statuswith the current status and reward status; and outputting the currentstatus, reward status, and desired status using the determined format.

In yet another embodiment, a method for outputting a status for one ormore loyalty programs is provided. The method comprises: determining areward status in the one or more loyalty programs, the reward statusincluding a position where a reward is earned for the one or moreloyalty programs; determining a triggering amount for the one or moreloyalty programs, the triggering amount being an amount that is neededto earn the reward for the one or more loyalty programs; determining aformat to represent the triggering amount with the reward status; andoutputting the triggering amount and reward status using the determinedformat.

In another embodiment, a system for determining display formats forloyalty transactions is provided. The system comprises: a plurality ofportable devices, each portable device including portable deviceinformation specific to the portable device; a plurality of acceptancepoint devices, each acceptance point device including acceptance pointdevice information specific to the acceptance point device and aplurality of display formats; wherein the plurality of portable devicesparticipate in transactions with the plurality of acceptance pointdevices, each transaction including status information; wherein adisplay format for the status information for each transaction variesdepending on portable device information for a portable device in theplurality of portable devices and an acceptance point device informationfor an acceptance point device in the plurality of acceptance pointdevices, the display format being transaction specific.

In another embodiment, an apparatus for determining and displaying astatus in one or more loyalty programs is provided. The apparatuscomprises: a receiver configured to communicate with a portable deviceto determine portable device information associated with the portabledevice; loyalty program information associated with one or more loyaltyprograms that are supported by the apparatus; logic to determine acurrent status, reward status, and desired status for one or morerewards of the one or more loyalty programs for the portable devicebased on the portable device information and the loyalty programinformation; logic to determine a display format based on the portabledevice information and the loyalty program information; and an outputdevice configured to output the current status, reward status, anddesired status based on the display format.

In another embodiment, a system for determining display formats forloyalty transactions is provided. The system comprises: a plurality ofportable devices, each portable device including portable deviceinformation specific to the portable device; a plurality of acceptancepoint devices, each acceptance point device including acceptance pointdevice information specific to the acceptance point device and aplurality of display formats; wherein the plurality of portable devicesparticipate in transactions with the plurality of acceptance pointdevices, each transaction including status information; wherein adisplay format for the status information for each transaction variesdepending on portable device information for a portable device in theplurality of portable devices and an acceptance point device informationfor an acceptance point device in the plurality of acceptance pointdevices, the display format being transaction specific.

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the inventionherein may be realized by reference of the remaining portions in thespecifications and the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a system for providing a status for one or more loyaltyprograms according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a system for providing a statusfor one or more rewards using a display format according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a method for providing status information for one ormore rewards according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a method for determining status information accordingto one embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGS. 5-9 depict embodiments of display formats according to embodimentsof the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 depicts a system 100 for providing a status for one or moreloyalty programs according to one embodiment of the present invention.System 100 includes sponsors 102, a program administer 104, a host 106,a network 107, acceptance point devices 113, and one or more portabledevices 110.

One or more sponsors 102 are providers of prizes and incentives forloyalty programs. Sponsors 102 are any entities, such as productmanufacturers, that can sponsor a loyalty program. Sponsors 102typically define the parameters of how a loyalty program is provided.This information may include the rewards that are awarded, therequirements that define whether a reward should be awarded, theeligible participants, and any information for formatting statusinformation for loyalty programs.

Once sponsors 102 define a respective loyalty program, a programadministrator 104 receives the information for the loyalty programs andtranslates the information into a format readable by host 106. Thetranslated information is outputted to host 106.

Host 106 is a central administrator of all loyalty programs for system100. Host 106 receives the information from program administrator 104and can selectively download the information through a network 107 to aplurality of acceptance point devices 113.

Network 107 may be any network, such as the Internet, a wirelessnetwork, a wire line network, a local area network (LAN), a wide areanetwork (WAN), and the like. In one embodiment, the loyalty parametermay be selectively downloaded to certain acceptance point devices 113.For example, loyalty programs may be downloaded through applicabledistribution channels 108 that will be offering the loyalty program.

Distribution channels 108 include one or more acceptance point devices113 capable of performing a loyalty transaction. In one embodiment,acceptance point devices 113 include a standalone physical point of sale(PPOS) device 114, an integrated physical point of sale device 116, anda mobile device 118. Acceptance point devices 113 may perform loyaltytransactions offline. In one embodiment, offline indicates thatacceptance point device 113 does not need to communicate with host 106to perform the loyalty transaction or to determine eligible incentivesfor a loyalty transaction. Acceptance point device 113 may, however,communicate with host 106 for other reasons, such as for reportingresults of transactions, etc.

Stand alone PPOS 114 is a stand alone device dedicated to performingpoint of sale transactions. For example, PPOS 114 includes a point ofsale device, computing devices, personal digital assistants, kiosks,etc. Point of sale devices found in merchants' stores are examples ofstand alone PPOS devices 114.

Integrated PPOS 116 may be a point of sale or acceptance point devicethat has been integrated into another device, such as a computer. Forexample, integrated PPOS 116 may be an application on the World Wide Web(WWW) accessed through a computing device over the Internet. A websitefor shopping on the Internet and a card acceptance device may be anexample of PPOS 116.

Mobile devices 118 include any mobile devices, such as cellular phones,personal digital assistants (PDA), pocket personal computers (PCs),laptop computers, tablet computers, etc. One difference between mobiledevices 118 and PPOS devices 114 and 116 is that PPOS devices 114 and116 communicate with a portable device 110 in order to enable a loyaltytransaction. Mobile devices 118, however, may not communicate withportable device 110 because mobile devices 118 are a portable device 110and may also perform the functions of acceptance point device 113together.

Portable devices 110 are devices that are used by loyalty programparticipants to conduct loyalty transactions. For example, portabledevices 110 include smartcards, cellular phones, personal digitalassistants (PDAs), pagers, payment cards, security cards, access cards,smart media, transponders, and the like. Each portable device 110includes a module, such as a computer chip with dedicated hardware,software, embedded software, or any combination thereof, that is used toperform actions associated with loyalty transactions.

Portable devices 110 include portable device information 120. Similarly,mobile devices 118 also include portable device information 120.Portable device information 120 includes any information that uniquelyidentifies either portable device 110 or mobile device 118. For example,portable device information 120 may be an identifier, a unique ID, aserial number, an account number, etc. Thus, a user that is associatedwith portable device 110 or mobile device 118 may be uniquely identifiedusing portable device information 120. Also, portable device information120 includes any other information related to a loyalty program, such asinformation on which loyalty programs portable device 110 is eligiblefor and status information for the loyalty programs.

A transaction is typically performed between portable device 110 andstand alone PPOS 114 or integrated PPOS 116. In another embodiment,mobile devices 118 may participate in a loyalty transaction. In thiscase, mobile device 118 performs the transaction with a stand alone PPOS114, an integrated PPOS 116 or a host 106, where host 106 performs thefunctionality of stand alone PPOS 114 or integrated PPOS 116. Fordiscussion and illustrative purposes, it will be described that atransaction is being performed between portable device 110 andacceptance point device 113. It should be understood, however, that thetransaction may be between portable device 110 and PPOS 114 and/or 116,or mobile devices 118 and host 106.

A transaction between portable device 110 and acceptance point device113 may be a loyalty transaction under a loyalty program. For example, aloyalty transaction is where a user of portable device 110 is purchasingitems that qualify the user and portable device 110 for one or moreincentives or rewards in the loyalty program. Incentives or rewardsoffer something of value for a user.

Embodiments of the present invention are configured to provide a statusfor one or more rewards for one or more portable devices 110. In oneembodiment, a status is displayed using a display format that isselected based on information associated with portable device 110 andacceptance point device 113. Display formats may vary between differentportable devices 110 and acceptance point devices 113. Thus, statusinformation may be customized on a per-transaction basis based onportable device 110 and acceptance point device 113 participating in thetransaction.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a system 200 for providing astatus for one or more rewards using a display format according to oneembodiment of the present invention. System 200 includes portable device110, acceptance point device 113, and host 106.

Host 106 includes host information 204. In one embodiment, hostinformation 204 may include any information for loyalty programs thatmay be downloaded to acceptance point device 113. In one embodiment,host information 204 may include status information for a portabledevice 110. For example, as transactions are processed at acceptancepoint device 113, information for the transactions are downloaded tohost 106. Host 106 stores the information for portable device 110 and,from time to time, may download the status information to acceptancepoint device 113. In another embodiment, acceptance point device 113 maycommunicate with host 106 to determine the status information at thetime of issuance of a reward, for example for a lost or stolen card.

Although host 106 may include status information, portable device 110may include status information that may be different from the statusinformation found in host information 204. For example, statusinformation may be downloaded to host 106 from acceptance point device113 at certain intervals (e.g., at the end of the day, week, etc.).Portable device 110 may participate in transactions that cause thestatus information to be different than status information stored athost 106. The up-to-date status information is stored as portable deviceinformation 120. Thus, portable device information 120 may be used todetermine status information when a transaction is processed betweenportable device 110 and acceptance point device 113.

Acceptance point device 113 receives the information for loyaltyprograms from host 106. The information defines the programs that aresupported by acceptance point device 113. Each loyalty program includesparameters that define the rewards of a loyalty program. Thisinformation is used in determining if a user is eligible for a rewardand is stored as acceptance point device information 202.

Acceptance point device 113 may also receive information for displayformats 206. The information may include different formats that are usedto output status information. For example, display formats 206 mayinclude graphical formats and/or text formats. Examples of these formatswill be described in more detail below. The determination of whichdisplay format 206 to use may depend on information determined for thetransaction. For example, portable device information 120 and acceptancepoint device information 202 may be used to determine a display format206 for a transaction.

During a transaction, acceptance point device 113 communicates withportable device 110 to determine portable device information 120.Portable device information 120 is information unique to portable device110 may include status information for loyalty programs that portabledevice 110 is eligible for. Acceptance point device 113 determines ifthe loyalty programs associated with portable device 110 are supportedusing acceptance point device information 202. If the loyalty program'sportable device 110 is eligible for are supported by acceptance pointdevice 113, acceptance point device 113 determines status informationfor the loyalty programs.

Because portable device information 120 and acceptance point deviceinformation 202 vary, the display formats may vary from transaction totransaction. Thus, status information and how status information isdisplayed varies between different portable devices 110 and acceptancepoint devices 113. Also, the same user associated with portable 110 maybe presented with varying messages at different acceptance point devices113 and two different users with different portable devices 110 may bepresented with different messages at the same acceptance point devices113 even if the current purchases are identical.

Once one or more loyalty programs are determined for the transaction,the status information is determined for one or more rewards in one ormore loyalty programs. Once the status information is determined, adisplay format in a plurality of display formats 206 is selected fordisplaying the status information. In one embodiment, the display formatselected is transaction specific. For example, variable fields found inportable device information 120 and acceptance point device information202 may be used to determine a display format 206. Also, other factorsmay be used to determine the display format. For example, theconstraints of a display device, user preferences, etc. may be used.

In one embodiment, a display format is determined so that the statusinformation displayed may stimulate a user to perform a desired actionor influence the user's behavior. In one embodiment, a current status isdetermined along with a reward status and a desired status. The currentstatus is the current position for a user of portable device 110 in oneor more loyalty programs. For example, the current status may be anumber of items that the user has purchased towards receiving a rewardin a loyalty program, the dollar amount of items purchased, etc. Thecurrent status may also be the items that need to be purchased in orderto receive the reward. Thus, the current status may be forward lookingand tells the user what actions need to be performed in order to receivethe reward. This enables a merchant to influence user behavior before apurchase is made.

The reward status is a position that the user needs to reach in order tobe awarded one or more rewards for the one or more loyalty programs. Forexample, the reward status may be the items that a user needs topurchase in order to qualify for a reward for the one or more loyaltyprograms.

The desired status is a position where a merchant would like the user toreach in the loyalty program. For example, it may be desired that a userpurchase another product instead of a product that will satisfy thereward status. A different reward for a different loyalty program thanthe loyalty program associated with the reward status may be offered asthe desired status.

Once a display format 206 is determined, the status information isformatted using display format 206 and output in a message 208. Message208 may be a printed receipt that includes graphics and/or text. Also,message 208 may be an electronic display of the status information thatincludes graphics and/or text. Additionally, message 208 may be ane-mail, text message, instant message, etc.

FIG. 3 illustrates a method for providing status information for one ormore rewards according to one embodiment of the present invention. Instep 302, acceptance point device 113 communicates with portable device110 to determine portable device information 120. Portable deviceinformation 120 includes information unique to portable device 110. Forexample, portable device information 120 includes status information forone or more loyalty programs in which portable device 110 is eligible.

In step 304, information associated with acceptance point device 113 isdetermined.

Acceptance point device information 202 includes information that isunique to acceptance point device 113. For example, acceptance pointdevice information 202 may include information about which loyaltyprograms are supported by acceptance point device 113.

In step 306, the status of any loyalty programs that are eligible forthis transaction are determined. In one embodiment, any combination ofportable device information 120 and acceptance point device information202 is used to determine the status information. For example, theprograms portable device 110 are eligible for are compared to theloyalty programs supported by acceptance point device 113. Statusinformation for the loyalty programs that portable device 110 iseligible for and supported by acceptance point device 113 is thendetermined.

In determining the status information, a current status, a rewardstatus, and a desired status may be determined. The current status isthe current position of the user relative to the reward status. Forexample, the current position may be the number of items a user haspurchased using portable device 110 needs to purchase.

The reward status is the position in which a reward will be awarded. Forexample, the reward status may be the number of items that need to bepurchased in order for a reward to be awarded for portable device 110.

The desired status is a position where a merchant would like the user toreach in the loyalty program. For example, the desired status may beitems that a merchant wants to influence the user of portable device 110to purchase. The desired status is also not limited to the loyaltyprograms that portable device 110 is eligible for. For example,supported programs for acceptance point device 113 that were notincluded in portable device information 120 may be included in thedesired status. Thus, a user may be offered rewards in different loyaltyprograms that a user does not participate in or does not know about.Although all three status positions are determined, it will beunderstood that not all status positions may be determined.

In step 308, once the status information is determined, a display format206 in one or more display formats 206 is determined. In one embodiment,acceptance point device 113 supports multiple display formats 206. Forexample, graphical and/or text display formats may be supported. Ingraphical display formats 206, a graph, table, and other graphical styleoptions may be supported. In addition, text may be included in thegraphical display formats.

In one embodiment, display format 206 may be determined using portabledevice information 120 and acceptance point device information 202. Forexample, information (e.g., variable fields) in acceptance point deviceinformation 202 and portable device information 120 may be used todetermine display format 206. The variable fields may be compared withfields associated with a plurality of display formats. A display format206 that corresponds to the variable fields is then selected.

Additionally, the content of the status information may also be used todetermine the display format. For example, different display formats maybe selected based on the position of the current status, reward status,and/or desired status. In one embodiment, status information for a newprogram may be displayed in a different size font or different colorthan a program that existed or was used by a user before the currenttransaction.

In step 310, the status information is outputted based on the selecteddisplay format. In one embodiment, the status information may be printedor displayed. Also, the status information may be e-mailed, textmessaged, instant messaged, etc. If the status information is printed,the status information message may be printed in a combination of textand/or graphics. Additionally, the printing may be produced on the frontor back of the receipt and orientation can also be vertical orhorizontal. The same is true for status information that is displayed ona display device.

FIG. 4 illustrates a method for determining status information accordingto one embodiment of the present invention. In step 402, a currentstatus for portable device 110 in one or more loyalty programs isdetermined. In one embodiment, portable device information 120 alsoincludes the current status for the loyalty programs. The current statusmay include a triggering amount that is needed to obtain a reward.

In step 404, a reward status for the loyalty programs is determined. Inone embodiment, information associated with portable device information120 and acceptance point device information 202 is used to determine thereward position. For example, loyalty program parameters downloaded fromhost 106 are used to determine how many items are needed for eachloyalty program in order for a reward to be awarded.

In step 406, a desired status for any loyalty programs is determined.The desired status may be a level in any loyalty programs that aresupported by acceptance point device 113. Thus, a desired status forloyalty programs that portable device 110 does not participate in may bedetermined. For example, portable device information 120 may not includea loyalty program. However, acceptance point 113 may determine a desiredstatus for loyalty programs that have not been loaded and stored inportable device information 120.

In step 408, a display format 206 is determined. For example, thedisplay format may be determined based on the desired position, currentposition, and reward position and/or portable device information 120 andacceptance point device information 202. A display format 206 isdetermined so that a user's behavior will be influenced to performactions that will satisfy the desired position. For example, a graph maybe used that displays the desired position above the reward position inrelation to the current position. Also, in order to highlight loyaltyprograms that are not included in portable device information 120, asection that indicates rewards a user may be interested in may also bedisplayed. Additionally, the triggering amount may be displayed so thata user can determine what items are needed to obtain the reward.

In step 410, the status information is displayed showing any combinationof the current position, reward position, and the desired position.

The following figures depict embodiments of messages 208. Although thefollowing messages 208 are shown, it will be understood that variationsof messages 208 may be appreciated.

FIG. 5 illustrates a graph 500 that is generated using a display formataccording to one embodiment of the present invention. Graph 500 includesan X axis and Y axis where the purchase patterns of the loyalty programsP1 and P2 for a user of portable device 110 are plotted. Graph 500includes two curves, Y and Z, each of which represents a different “nextproduct to purchase from a current status when product X was purchased”.A user of portable device 110 may participate in a loyalty program P1 ora loyalty program P2 from the current position X. If the user ofportable device 110 purchases product Y, then the reward program P1 issatisfied and the user is awarded a reward equal to a value of $1 on theY axis. On the other hand, if the user purchases product Z, the rewardprogram P2 is satisfied and the user is awarded a higher value reward,for example, a $2 amount value on the Y axis. As values on the Y axisincrease, the reward value increases.

The position “Z” illustrates a desired position for a loyalty programP2. Loyalty program P2 is a loyalty program that a merchant wants toinfluence a user to participate in. For example, program P1 includes theprogram “buy one laundry detergent X and two liquid fabric softeners Yand get 5% off.” Program P2 includes the parameters “buy one laundrydetergent X and three fabric softener sheets Z and get 10% off.” If theuser of portable device 110 traditionally participates in program P1 andhas purchased one laundry detergent X and needs to purchase two liquidfabric softeners to receive a reward, a merchant may offer the user theopportunity to participate in program P2. Program P2, however, requiresa user to switch to fabric softener sheets Z and purchase additionalquantities to get a higher discount. This information is communicated toa user using graph 500.

Accordingly, the desired status is represented in a graph format alongwith the reward status. A user can quickly determine which products needto be purchased in order to earn a reward in two different loyaltyprograms. A large amount of text is not needed to convey the status ofloyalty programs to a user.

FIG. 6 illustrates a list 600 for presenting status information for oneor more loyalty programs using a display format according to oneembodiment of the present invention. List 600 includes specific productsand quantities for each product purchased for each reward program. Auser is informed of what products to purchase and in what quantities inorder to maximize rewards.

As shown, a list of products 602 is printed or displayed in list 600.For each product, the quantity that needs to be purchased in order toreceive a reward is shown. Thus, the number of products in order totrigger a reward is shown. This allows the merchant to influence auser's behavior before a purchase is made. List of products 602 providesa proactive stimulus in depicting what products need to be purchased inorder to receive a reward. This is different from displaying the numberof products that have already been purchased by a user. List of products602 provides a shopping list for a user and is forward-looking ratherthan backwards-looking.

List 600 also includes a desired list 604 that displays products thatoffer a higher rewards potential than products listed in list ofproducts 602. For example, in order to influence a user to participatein other rewards programs, list 604 is used to display products thatneed to be purchased for a higher rewards potential. As shown, product10 provides the offer of “buy Y and get Y free” and product 11 providesthe offer “buy $Y and get $Y off'. In one embodiment, products 10 and11, if purchased, will yield certain rewards that may be more desirablefor a merchant.

Other status information 606 may also be displayed in list 600. Theinformation shows the balance or the purchases that have already beenmade by the user of portable device 110. Additionally, any rewards thathave not been earned are also displayed.

FIG. 7 illustrates a graphical representation of a table 700 fordisplaying status information using a display format according to oneembodiment of the present invention. A list of days 702 is provided thatallows status information to be accessed by any day of the week, a weekending, or by month. As shown, the day “Thursday” is selected and atable 704 has been displayed.

Table 704 shows status information for a plurality of loyalty programsshown in columns 705. A purchase road map includes one or more items inrows 706 that need to be purchased in order to qualify for a reward forthe loyalty programs. The rewards are shown in a row 708.

For each item and loyalty program, one or more checkboxes are found. Thecheckboxes are provided to show what products need to be purchased inorder to qualify for the reward shown in row 708. For example, for theprogram 124, Doritos, peanut butter, and pita bread need to be purchasedin order to receive a reward of 5% off. Also, for the program 456,Doritos and a Fanta need to be purchased in order to receive a freesoda. As shown, the user has not purchased any items for a program 124(i.e., no checkboxes have been checked) and its balance as shown in row710 is zero. However, a user has purchased Doritos and a Fanta forprogram 506 (i.e., the checkboxes have been checked) and has thusreceived a free soda.

A user may quickly identify which products need to be purchased forwhich programs by viewing the displayed checkboxes. Table 700 also showswhich products need to be purchased in a forward-looking manner ratherthan just showing what products a user has purchased. For example, for aprogram 4587, the user can determine that a Fanta twelve-pack has beenpurchased, but Doritos, peanut butter, and pita bread need to bepurchased in order to receive a 15%-off reward. Thus, the table 700 canstimulate purchase behavior by showing what products need to bepurchased.

Table 700 also can show a large amount of programs and rewards in acompact manner. In one embodiment, if all the programs and associatedproducts for loyalty programs in table 700 were printed in text, theamount of text would be very large for a printed receipt. Thus, bygraphically representing the loyalty programs with the rewards andproducts that need to be purchased for the reward, status informationmay be efficiently presented. Also, the status information is displayedin a way that may stimulate user behavior to purchase certain products.

FIG. 8 illustrates a display 800 for status information using a displayformat 206 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Display800 includes a graphical display 802 that indicates how many productshave been purchased and how many products need to be purchased for areward of product X in a loyalty program.

Display 802 is designed to give a user an indication of how many unitsneed to be purchased. A number of units that have been purchased isrepresented with darkened squares and the number of units that need tobe purchased are represented with empty squares. Thus, a user canquickly glance at graphical display 802 and determine how many unitsneed to be purchased by looking at the empty squares. The empty squaresgive a visual sense of how many products a user has to purchase in orderto receive the reward. This is different from printing out a number ofproducts that the user has purchased. For example, a user can visuallysee how far the user is from receiving the reward. Also, the user cansee how many units of a product need to be purchased in order to receivethe reward.

Also, a text display 804 is shown to indicate the number of products ordollar amount of products that need to be purchased to receive a reward.This presents a forward-looking status of what products need to bepurchased instead of indicating what products have already beenpurchased.

A section 806 is included that indicates programs that a merchant maydesire a user to participate in. For example, section 806 includes aproduct 10 and a product 11 that need to be purchased in order toreceive different rewards from loyalty programs that a merchant wants auser participate in.

FIG. 9 illustrates a receipt 900 that displays status information usinga display format according to one embodiment of the present invention.As shown, receipt 900 includes a current status 902 of zero dollars.Additionally, receipt 900 includes a reward status 902 that indicatesthe number of products (dollar amount) that need to be purchased inorder to trigger a reward.

Accordingly, embodiments of the present invention provide statusinformation that is displayed according to a display format. In oneembodiment, an acceptance point device includes a plurality of displayformats. A display format is determined based on information associatedwith the portable device and information associated with the acceptancepoint device.

The status information may also include a current status, reward status,and desired status. Thus, a user's behavior may be influenced bydisplaying a desired status that indicates desired actions that need tobe taken in order to receive a different reward than the reward offeredfor the reward status. Also, the status information may beforward-looking in providing a user with the items that need to bepurchased in order to receive a reward.

Embodiments of the present invention include many advantages. Forexample, a user's behavior may be influenced by providing statusinformation in one of the display formats. A display format thatincludes graphics may more efficiently display status information forone or more loyalty programs. Thus, a user may be more likely to viewthe status information and determine which products need to be purchasedin order to obtain a reward. Also, by including desired loyalty programsand what products need to be purchased in order to obtain a reward forthe desired loyalty programs, a user's behavior may be influenced intoparticipating in more desirable loyalty programs before a purchase ismade.

While the present invention has been described using a particularcombination of hardware and software implemented in the form of controllogic, it should be recognized that other combinations of hardware andsoftware are also within the scope of the present invention. The presentinvention may be implemented only in hardware, or only in software, orusing combinations thereof.

The above description is illustrative but not restrictive. Manyvariations of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in theart upon review of the disclosure. The scope of the invention should,therefore, be determined not with reference to the above description,but instead should be determined with reference to the pending claimsalong with their full scope of equivalents.

1-54. (canceled)
 55. A method of influencing a future purchase of a userwho participates in a first loyalty program, the method comprising:obtaining, at a computer, account information associated with the user;processing, at the computer, the account information to determine acurrent status of the user in the first loyalty program; anddetermining, at the computer, a reward status for the first loyaltyprogram, the reward status being a position in the first loyalty programthat would qualify the user to receive a reward having a first value;and determining, at the computer, a first future purchase that wouldcause the user to achieve the reward status in the first loyalty programand qualify the user to receive the reward having the first value;determining, at the computer, a desired status for the user, the desiredstatus being a position in a second loyalty program that a merchantdesires the user to achieve and that qualifies the user to receive areward having a second, higher value; determining, at the computer, asecond future purchase that would cause the user to achieve the desiredstatus in the second loyalty program and qualify the user to receive thereward having the second, higher value; and generating, by the computer,a graphical representation that influences the user to make the secondfuture purchase, rather than the first future purchase, by comparativelyillustrating that the second future purchase qualifies the user toreceive the reward having the second, higher value, whereas the firstfuture purchase would qualify for the reward having the first, lowervalue.
 56. The method of claim 55, wherein, during a transactioninvolving the user and the merchant, an acceptance point device of themerchant obtains from a device of the user the account informationassociated with the user.
 57. The method of claim 56, wherein thecomputer obtains from the acceptance point device the user informationassociated with the user.
 58. The method of claim 55, furthercomprising: causing, by the computer, a device of the user to display tothe user the generated graphical representation that influences the userto make the second future purchase.
 59. The method of claim 55, whereinselecting the display format is based in on the status, the rewardstatus, and the desired status.
 60. The method of claim 55, wherein thegraphical representation that influences the user to make the secondfuture purchase includes one or more of a chart, a table, a picture, abar chart, and text.
 61. A method for displaying on a device of a userinformation that influences the user to achieve in one or more loyaltyprograms a position that a merchant desires the user to achieve, themethod comprising: obtaining, by a computer, account informationassociated with the user; obtaining, by the computer, loyalty programinformation associated with the merchant; determining, by the computer,a current status of the user in the one or more loyalty programs basedat least in part on the account information associated with the user;determining, by the computer, a desired status of the user in the one ormore loyalty programs based at least in part on the loyalty programinformation associated with the merchant, wherein the desired statusrepresents the position in the one or more loyalty programs the merchantdesires the user to achieve; and selecting, by the computer, a displayformat from among a plurality of display formats that presents on thedevice of the user the current status and the desired status in a mannerthat influences the user to perform actions to achieve the desiredstatus.
 62. The method of claim 61, wherein the device of the user is amobile device, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA),a personal computers (PC), a laptop computer, or a tablet computer. 63.The method of claim 61, wherein the account information associated withthe user is obtained from the device of the user.
 64. The method ofclaim 63, wherein an acceptance point device of the merchant obtainsfrom the device of the user the account information associated with theuser during a transaction involving the user and the merchant.
 65. Themethod of claim 64, wherein the computer obtains from the acceptancepoint device the account information.
 66. The method of claim 65,wherein the computer obtains from the acceptance point device theloyalty program information associated with the merchant.
 67. The methodof claim 61, further comprising: wherein the current status is a currentposition of the user in a first loyalty program and the desired statusis a future position in a second loyalty program that the merchantdesires the user to achieve, determining, by the computer, a firstfuture purchase that would cause the user to achieve a reward status inthe first loyalty program and qualify the user to receive a rewardhaving the first value; and determining, by the computer, a secondfuture purchase that would cause the user to achieve the desired statusin the second loyalty program and qualify the user to receive a rewardhaving a second, higher value.
 68. The method of claim 67, wherein thedisplay format selected from among the plurality of display formats is agraphical representation that influences the user to make the secondfuture purchase, rather than the first future purchase, by comparativelyillustrating that the second future purchase qualifies the user toreceive the reward having the second, higher value, whereas the firstfuture purchase would qualify for the reward having the first, lowervalue.
 69. An apparatus configured to display on a device of a userinformation that influences the user to achieve in a loyalty program aposition that a merchant desires the user to achieve, the apparatuscomprising: storage containing loyalty program information associatedwith the merchant, account information associated with the user, and aplurality of display formats; logic to process the account informationassociated with the user to determine a current status of the user inthe loyalty program; logic to process the loyalty program informationassociated with the merchant to determine a desired status of the userin the loyalty program, wherein the desired status represents theposition in the loyalty program the merchant desires the user toachieve; and logic to select a display format from among the pluralityof display formats that presents on the device of the user the currentstatus and the desired status in a manner that influences the user toperform actions to achieve the desired status.
 70. The apparatus ofclaim 69, wherein the device of the user is a mobile device, a cellulartelephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a personal computers(PC), a laptop computer, or a tablet computer.
 71. The apparatus ofclaim 69, wherein the account information associated with the user isobtained from the device of the user.
 72. The apparatus of claim 71,wherein an acceptance point device of the merchant obtains from thedevice of the user the account information associated with the userduring a transaction involving the user and the merchant.
 73. Theapparatus of claim 72, wherein the computer obtains from the acceptancepoint device the account information.
 74. The apparatus of claim 73,wherein the computer obtains from the acceptance point device theloyalty program information associated with the merchant.